Crises and natural disasters happen all of the time. This was something that we have discussed and talked about in my classes (this was actually the topic of conversation in my social media class this morning) and we were talking about not only what has been going on in the Philippines, but also what happened this past weekend in the Midwest. Images and photos of the destruction of the communities impacted the tornadoes that hit the midwest captivated social media this past weekend. These photos were powerful and showcased the stories behind those that were impact by the storm.
It was surprising to see a tornado hit this area this time of year. We have seen these happen of course during the summer, but in November? That was a bit off for this time of year. From a crisis communications standpoint, there are some lessons we can take away here for this situation and help prepare communities in case this happens in the future.
With natural disasters and other types of crisis situations, it is key to know from all perspectives what are some good crisis messages to disseminate to your communities and audiences on social media. This was actually a question my colleagues and I had a few years ago, and we did a value modeling study looking at social media updates related to Hurricane Irene. We found some interesting findings that contributed to the crisis communications literature as well as the practice for organizations and agencies to consider in a crisis situation. This research study was published in Public Relations Review.
- Media and creating Storifys: This is one way to showcase the updates in a centralized location to capture the emotions, updates, pictures, and information for others to follow. The Weather Network created one of these to feature some of these social media updates. This is key for us to synthesize all of the updates and photos in one location and be able to share it with others.
- Know appropriate hashtags to let authorities know what is going on at your location: Not only is it key to know which hashtags to search for when it comes to a social media disaster from the media, but it is key to see what others are posting related to the particular hashtag. It appears in this case, Twitter and Instagram were the dominate platforms for this storm, which we can see here.
- Monitor the images people are sharing: Some of the images that were posted were not related to this storm, so it is key to make sure to verify these appropriately so they are not viewed the same as those images that are credible and from the particular event. Looking at sites and resources for this could help in this matter for social media purposes.
- Make sure to take action to help after disaster: Looking at how to help both offline and online is key. There are several ways this can be done through specific apps as well as other resources. Another good resource to look at also is the Google Crisis Response site as well – these tools can help those recover and restore normalcy after a traumatic event and experience.
On a personal note, I am relieved to hear my friends who are in the IL area are safe and were not harmed during this scary storm. My thoughts and prayers do go out to those that have been impacted by this terrible storm.
Hope you all are having a great day.
Best Wishes,
Karen
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